Former firefighter pleads not guilty to terrorism charges

A fire captain accused of hiring a prostitute for a mentally challenged man was in court today long enough to plead on his most recent charge.

Derrick Harris, one of the former Shreveport firefighters involved in the Station 8 scandal, is accused of threatening his colleagues and the fire department headquarters by posting on Facebook last month that he wanted to remake a movie depicting murder.

He was arraigned Monday morning and pleaded not guilty to terrorism charges.

The 51-year-old reportedly traded a pistol for an assault rifle in the days surrounding his social media posting, which made authorities believe his threats were serious. His alleged Facebook post on July 10 said he wanted to cast Fire Chief Craig Mulford and former firefighter Billy Glass as characters in a revival of "Django Unchained," a film portraying a slave who commits several killings and destroys a plantation. Harris apparently referred to Central Fire Station as the "plantation."

The hearing on his motions and selection of a trial date for that charge were moved to Oct. 27.

Harris said he couldn't afford a private attorney and one was assigned to him from the public defender's office. Caddo Assistant District Attorney Dale Cox said he would not be available until that date because of other jury trials.

The other former firefighters — Clint Richardson, Jason Vaughan, Billy Glass — will make Caddo Court news again this week when on Thursday their misdemeanor prostitution trials begin before District Judge Ramona Emanuel. Harris will also appear, but only to select a date for his trial on the prostitution charge, a date he delayed because his lawyer, Carl Franklin, is still relatively new to the case.

Harris's trial on his felony cruelty to the infirm charge will begin Dec. 8.

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